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Campaign: Willowdown
Willowdown is a campaign setting set in the North Marches in the small village of Willowdown. The campaign is intended to be a 'seed campaign' in that characters are encouraged to start at either level one or just below it and have their origin story relate to the village itself. The idea with this campaign is to show how local villagers slowly evolve into heroes after a series of missions and tasks to secure the surrounding territory. Setting The setting for the Willowdown campaign is one of frontier survival. The campaign is set, optionally, during the The Great Silence, when clerical power has been stripped away from all humans and no human may receive divine healing. This period is marked by mass exodus from the Kels as the five city-states have become too dangerous, both politically and socially, to live within once the power of the Church of Arn has been crippled. Some humans who left the Kels set sail down the Black River and then north along the Marny or the Dragon-Tongue. The Marches soon became choked with human refugees and many gnomish cities and towns had no room for them. Not wanting to fall under the authority of a March Lord or Baron, many of the new settlements found those areas unclaimed with the North and South and established their own communities as a simple, but free river town. Many of the early settlements along the few roads were ramshackled patches of homes slapped together with a vague fence or wall to defend them against goblin raids. Those small settlements who could not construct an adequate defence were quickly wiped out due to the harsh conditions of the newly settled region. Stories floated from tavern to tavern about how this village was destroyed and all those within it were killed or drug away by goblin or orc attacks. By the time that the village of Willowdale had been built the gods had left humanity for nearly twenty years. Goblin and Orc attack were still common in the Marches and small villages were always a perferred target of the monstrous races. The date of the chronicle is 547 KR , the end of the Burning Times. Politics There is no government within the unclaimed lands of the Marches. Law only exists if you can enforce it yourself. The Burning Times, when the Order of the Blazing Sun actively hunted any who demonstrated 'undocumented magical talent' (arcane dabblers, witches and withers) within the Kels and the North and South Marches. Specific Encounters #Owlbear attack: Either a team of woodcutters or perhaps a scout will run into an Owlbear somewhere within the treeline. #Bandits: Either from the river as Barge Bandits or from the forest, a small force of men attempt to sneak in and steal the supplies of the camp. They're not there for murder, they want what they can eat and sell. #Trouble at the Mine: Black Worm's have been spotted along the cave walls of the mine. #Witch in the Woods: The wood cutters are warned not to approach a particular section of the forest. It is the home of a witch of unknown power and intentions. #Goblin Scouts: While conducting their patrols around the forest line, the guards of the camp discover a deer which has a goblin arrow sticking out of its neck and its body has been gnawed upon. Goblin tracks encircle the body and lead off away from the camp. General Encounters As the setting is on the frontier of the human lands and set within a forested terrain, there are a number of things that can go wrong within the campaign. #Encounter: Monstrous Beast: #Encounter: Giant Insect nest: Woodcutters disturb a nest of giant insects and are chased back to camp by what they find. #Encounter: Monstrous Plant : Scouts, while marking trees to be cut down for the work crews stumble upon a monstrous plant. Category:Campaign Category:Campaign/North Marches Category:Campaign/Great Silence